Jamie Webster shares relatable track ‘24 Hours in A&E’
The Liverpudlian shares new single at the end of Summer.
Photo: Jamie Webster
Summer 2024 has been big. We’ve seen artists give us ‘Brat Summers’, the love story of Mr & Mrs Human Race and joining the talent of this summer, Jamie Webster released his two latest singles, Breadline and 24 Hours in A&E at the beginning and end of the six week summer period.
Breadline is the first single that came out over the summer at the beginning of July. The track moves us through the story of what life is coming from a working-class background and the struggles that are faced in day to day. The first half of the song describes a person who just “lost a brother” and how they’re struggling to hang onto this hope of things getting better and being on the breadline.
The instrumentation behind the first half is really simple. One man and his guitar. Being stripped down to the bare minimum helps portray the rawness and vulnerability that the character of the song feels. The second half of the song we start to see more movement in terms of both progress in the storyline and a brighter sound as we get introduced to an upbeat drum pattern. The progression and movement of the song creates a feeling of hope and a more positive outlook on life. This is reflected through the lyrics, as the person starts to get their life on track; they find some work and start to move forward.
The song is relatable. It’s a story that describes a person having a really low moment in life and feeling like they’re at the bottom of this pit and then slowly through time they break out of this by moving their life forward in baby steps. If Willy Russell’s play Blood Brothers was written to reflect the society we live in today, this would be Mickey Johnstone’s favourite track to listen to.
24 Hours in A&E dropped in late August as summer drew to a close. Webster’s signature guitar was hung up for this track as he delved into a new sound, influenced by the New York Hip-Hop scene. Gone were the indie sing-along vocals and in its place was a powerful and moving spoken-word-styled vocal delivery.
The track comes after the post-election and eviction of the Conservative Party from 10 Downing Street and serves as a gentle reminder to the government to start looking after the NHS as they are bombarded and overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people that come through the doors. The song describes the decline of the NHS under the Tory government and how they neglected to look after the people within the hospitals and doctors and care homes. The title itself, 24 Hours in A&E, might seem extreme, but it really is considered the normal waiting times now.
24 Hours In A&E is out now via Modern Sky.